Five Areas You Need to Focus on When Renovating Your Luxury Home

The big question for luxury home builders in Hawaii: New home or remodel? Interestingly, 79% of respondents to a recent industry survey said they were opting to improve the home they already lived in—and 78% also viewed home remodeling as an investment.

Their reasoning differed, but 27% of those surveyed said renovating was a better way to personalize their home. 26% said it was cheaper to renovate than buy a new home. About 9% said it was too stressful to find a new home at the moment. And 7% said the current housing market had limited options.

Of those looking to renovate, had bigger projects in mind, with 31% redoing floors, 29% remodeling bathrooms, and 28% remodeling kitchens.

1 Decisions, decisions.

Luxury home builders in Hawaii suggest asking yourself a question: Are you renovating to make your home more livable for yourself, or to increase the home’s value before you sell it?

2. Set the Budget

To get an approximate value of your remodeling project, consider the current value of the entire house. The cost for a major addition is likely to be at least 10-15% of your home's value. Be realistic about renovation projects frequently going over budget. Consider adding an additional 20% or so for project overruns."

After talking with contractors to figure out the renovation cost, determine how you will fund the project. Are you paying from your savings, taking a loan, or applying for a home equity line of credit? The budget needs to fit within the limit of available funds.

3 Choose the Right Contractor

Luxury home builders in Hawaii suggest requesting bids from multiple contractors and comparing terms. Ensure that the contractor you choose understands your needs and the project budget.

4 Communicate Schedules and Timelines

Work with your contractors to create a schedule for the entire project. In addition to the completion date, ask for interim milestones that will help you determine when to make installment payments. Also, these smaller tripwires will provide hints about whether the original timeline is on track.

5 Renovate the kitchen First, then bathrooms, bedrooms and other living areas.

Luxury home builders in Hawaii recommend starting the renovations with the room you use the most.

It’s best to start with the kitchen or bathrooms. Luxury home builders estimate that homeowners can recover 59% of the cost of a complete kitchen renovation if they sell their home. Start with the kitchen remodel, because it creates the most dust and debris, which you won't want landing on new paint or finish jobs. Since a large kitchen remodel typically takes several months to complete, you’ll want to set up a temporary substitute kitchen in the dining room, family room, or another adjacent area in your house.

Richard BreauxComment